Sunday 9 June 2024
Then Jesus went home; and the crowd came together again, so that they could not even eat. When his family heard it, they went out to restrain him, for people were saying, "He has gone out of his mind." And the scribes who came down from Jerusalem said, "He has Beelzebul, and by the ruler of the demons he casts out demons." (vs 20-21)
Background
Today’s gospel reading is difficult. Perhaps it is helpful to know that the word for ‘text’ comes from the Latin word for ‘weaving’. Today’s gospel reading is a weaving of thoughts and ideas through which we need to listen for ‘the love between the lines’ (St John Chrysostom in the 4th century commended this way of listening or reading a text.)
Mark is writing out of a compelling relationship which is offered for the reader or listener to share.
Chapters 2 and 3 of Mark are dominated by conflict stories – conflict over Jesus’ power to forgive; his inclusive meal practices; over Sabbath rules, and here, conflict between his mother and family and with the scribes from Jerusalem. Into the conflict a whispering campaign had begun: people are saying Jesus must ‘be from Beelzebul’. (v. 22)
Today we tend to interpret the demons in the Bible as inner demons, the dark side of human nature. We know that when we are up against it we all have within us the capacity to create chaos.
In earlier centuries there was a belief in the devil as a personal force of evil in the world, with demons as his servants, enticing people away from good living. We don’t have to share this understanding of demonology to believe that we can experience negative thoughts that cause us to act badly and, in some cases, they literally seem to possess us. Yet it appears that demons can both be embraced, or renounced. (I recommend an excellent book by Abbot Christopher Jamison Finding Happiness, 2009)
The passage about blaspheming against the Holy Spirit (vs 28-30) can be understood in the sense we have a choice: to perceive God’s Spirit in Jesus or not. It is part of the invitation to align ourselves to the values of the kingdom of God.
To Ponder:
- Jesus’ family were beginning to grasp that his life wasn’t going to follow a normal pattern: he wasn’t going to be working during the day and returning to the family at night. They had to adapt. Is this a time when we might need to make changes in our routines in order to attend to our inner life?
- This difficult passage from Mark is really a call to follow Christ. All that is good cannot be other than of God. Can we reflect on how if we can grow in compassion towards our own failings and weaknesses then we can be much more tolerant and compassionate towards others?
Prayer
Gracious Lord,
we thank you for all who
have encouraged us in the past,
and those who encourage us today.
May we give encouragement to others
and so unite with you to in finding hope in your
beautiful yet fragile world. Amen.
Bible notes author: The Reverend Sarah Burrow
Sarah is a MHA Chaplain. Today is MHA (Methodist Homes for the Aged) Sunday and the Word in Time reflections this week are all written by MHA chaplains. To find out more about MHA, click here.